Editorial: Rich’s Ramblings
One of the great parts of this hobby of ours is introducing friends and acquaintances to it. A few months ago a friend visited our home, the first visit in quite some time. The conversation somehow turned to music, so I invited him into my music room to play a couple of records. He politely obliged, but I could tell he was just humouring me. His curiosity was piqued when he saw my MartinLogan Spires, but he also volunteered that he doubted that he’d hear any difference between my high-end rig and his modestly priced (but hardly bargain basement) set up. So I asked him what his favourite record was, and luckily I had a copy. I sat him in the sweet spot, dimmed the lights, and turned up the volume.
I could almost hear his jaw hit the floor as the track started playing. When the track finished and the lights were turned back up, he had this huge grin on his face and exclaimed, “Now I get it!”. Needless to say, what was supposed to be just a couple of tracks turned into several hours, and my friend had a new-found appreciation for music and high-end audio.
I think that it’s vital that we encourage new people—especially younger people—to take up our hobby. Too many people are content with streaming MP3 audio, but I think that this is a prime example of ignorance being bliss. If they only knew what they were missing!